A Carbon Replica Technique for Microbiological Specimens Applied to the Study of the Division of Saccharomyces Cerevisiæ With the Electron Microscope

SYNOPSIS The surfaces of bacteria and similar organisms cannot be satisfactorily studied in the electron microscope because of the excessive mass thickness of the cells. The paper describes an adaptation of the carbon replica technique, which enables a surface examination to be carried out. Artifacts, which are often present when cells are examined directly, are even more apparent in replica studies. The nature and origin of these artifacts is fully discussed. The replica technique is applied to a surface study of Saccharomyces cerevisiæ. By examining micrographs of replicas of budding scars and also of cells at various stages of division, it is possible to build up a plausible picture of the whole division process.